I do believe that Latin America and Iran-Contra is relevent to this conflict, it goes directly to our credibility w/ the rest of the world, (and many U.S. citizens, including me), about our true motivations and goals w/ our foreign policies. The fact of the matter is that we have never given a rat's ass about dictators silencing their own people through brutal means as long as said dictators were furthering 'U.S. interests' in some way. The compromises that we have been willing to make in that area have always been unacceptable to me, and many others.
Well, your comment should be directed at mankind in whole, because there are NO innocent leaders in this world. The leaders made decisions they deemed proper due to the information in hand, at that time. Sometimes there was no right decision, and instead a policy was chosen since it was the least worse option. History teaches us where we went wrong, but that doesn't imply we lack credibility now. Where do you draw the limit on past policy. If you look back far enough, every country has a dirty past.
In the case of Iraq, liberation complements the attack, since removal of Saddam in essence IS a liberation. Liberation is not the ONLY task of this war. I argue that removal of Saddam and his aides would have prevented today's events, AND it would have prevented sufferring by the Iraqi people. That seems to be a win-win solution, but the U.N. seems to have a stance where they slap one's wrist and say,"You be nice now. We're going to let you sit in this sandbox, but we're gonna take away your shovel. Now these guys over here have a shovel, but you be nice now." Is it a call for immediate war? No, but I understand why and where we are heading.
If this is truly the dawn of a new age where as the world's foremost superpower we will no longer tolerate human rights abuses by anyone, anywhere, than I am all for it. But count me as sceptical, if no oil is involved. 
Comon, this is America, not Utopia. It will take great intestinal strength to further human rights in the world. It means all U.S. citizens must sacrifice. Let's start with China. It also means we have to take corruption out of the gubmint. It also means we have to become isolationists, since peace-lovers would want us to act through diplomacy and trade relations. Military force is not the answer for all situations. Of course, the French will hate us even more, but who cares.
j